The present inventions provide a system for creation of assays such as assays based on the use of mass spectrometry.
A common aspect of all life on earth is the use of polypeptides as functional building blocks and the encryption of the instructions for the building blocks in the blueprint of nucleic acids (DNA, RNA). What distinguishes between living entities lies in the instructions encoded in the nucleic acids of the genome and the way the genome manifests itself in response to the environment as proteins. The complement of proteins, protein fragments, and peptides present at any specific moment in time defines who and what we are at that moment, as well as our state of health or disease.
One of the greatest challenges facing biomedical research and medicine is the limited ability to distinguish between specific biological states or conditions that affect an organism. This is reflected in the limited ability to detect the earliest stages of disease, anticipate the path any apparent disease may take in one patient versus another, predict the likelihood of response for any individual to a particular treatment, and preempt the possible adverse affects of treatments on a particular individual.
New technologies and strategies are needed to inform medical care and improve the repertoire of medical tools, as well as methods to utilize such technologies and strategies.